the space between two worlds
by VeltPunch
Summary: femHikaru. Seoul International Academy was exactly the kind of school studious Shindou Hikaru wanted to get into, and much to Sai's displeasure, homework and essays would be replacing Go. Of course, she hadn't expected to meet Ko Yongha.
1. feather

_A drabble drawn upon my experiences in foreign schools and foreign languages, and how much you say is actually correct, and how much is lost in translation.

* * *

_

Shindou Hikaru blew a raspberry as she looked out the window, where rivulets of water splattered the glass and made the dreary city look like a surreal, watercolor abstract of ashen gray.

Seoul was usually beautiful in this season, but a recent typhoon had turned the entire Asian coast into a watery mess of shallow oceans in cities, and Hikaru wondered when she'd be able to go outside again.

The go salon was, as typical for a Friday night, packed with old people who smelled and wore horrid ankle socks and high water pants which made her acute fashion sense wilt. She had taken to the back corner, the glossy surface of the go board relatively untouched, aside from one black stone which she had placed at the upper left star point. Sai had wanted to play, but she had vehemently denied him. She had homework to do. That's what happens when you go to SAIS, the most prestigious international academy in Seoul.

She'd picked up the distraught ghost ages ago in her grandfather's shed, back when she still lived with the old geezer in Japan. She clearly remembered the day her parents died, a perfect summer sky and the bright lights of lanterns, swimming faces and alternating fluorescent lights of red and blue. Bent metal, sterile hospitals, and the silent movement of the Nakano river, quietly slipping away into the musty smell of the shed, and, inevitably, meeting the ghost which plagued her.

Well, plague was a really inaccurate term. A nuisance, was more like it. Sai didn't really do much aside from pester her to play go. She certainly didn't care much for the game, but Sai was rather adorable, and she honestly felt sorry for him. It must suck—the only person who could see him was a fourteen year old girl who was more interested in getting into the best schools.

Getting into SAIS was just one of the many goals she had in mind (and, much to Sai's immediate chagrin, none of those goals included becoming a professional go player)

Or at least, they hadn't.

Until recently.

She transferred into SAIS, where everyone knew everyone and were all so god damn studious and made her look entirely immature, with their pressed pleated skirts, white button down blouses and dark blue ties which made up the uniform, and everyone wore stern faces and straight-mouthed smiles and _god_—if she hadn't met Yongha, seen the boy in the back with the tousled auburn hair, a foreign nose, and two buttons undone, one missing.—she'd surely have run herself into the ground like that too.

It would be her luck that her first friend, her closest at this point, would be a go obsessed, suave little charmer.

"Lets hang out after school." She said eventually, finding enough courage to ask him to do something other then sit around with her in class. He was her only friend in Korea, as much as she didn't want to say it.

He gave her a strange look, and she wondered if that was proper etiquette in Korea.

In Japan, kids clamored together to walk home, kicked a soccer ball on the curb and laughed as they tossed drinks from street corner vending machines into girls' hair. One way or another, Hikaru would always end up at the arcade with Waya, or window shopping at the mall with Akari. She never had to ask to do something, it was just a free movement that happened naturally.

SAIS wasn't like that. SAIS was blank-faced children walking into the rain with their equally bland black umbrellas, getting into nondescript cars or waiting outside the school building for their rides. No one walked home, and if they did, they did so alone. No one wanted to hit up the arcade, or stop by Mcdonalds. In fact, no one really wanted to do much else aside from studying.

"Maybe next time." He said, and looked away.

Hikaru didn't know Yongha, but she did know people, and certainly people like Yongha. The boy was a lot like Waya, a childhood friend of hers who lived in the same schooling district as her grandfather. He had a funny laugh and a quirky grin, a horrid sense of balance too, as they found out one day at the Arakawa bridge. She wondered how he was doing (surely, by know, that grin had turned into a sexy smirk, and the boy was probably just fine) and was sorely reminded of him, studying the cut line of Yongha's jaw.

"You're embarrassed." She startled, candidly and with little tact. The prideful, stubborn boy only scowled and shook out his soft auburn hair. "Why?"

"I'm—," A blush. Hikaru blinked, amused. She'd never seen the boy blush. "I'm doing stuff."

"Stuff like what?" She pried on.

If possible, he turned even more away from her. SAIS was in a big building in the middle of the city, and looked more like an office. She supposed this would be the first floor, and the attendance office, the secretaries desk. He had moved to face the windows. Seoul was experiencing a typical lugubrious day.

"I'm going to a go salon." He rushed out, and immediately, Hikaru wondered why that was so embarrassing.

She supposed it may have something to do with her sex, her anatomy as a good-looking girl, and in part his kick-ass devil may care attitude which seemed to clash greatly with his aspirations as a professional go player—most of whom were tame, and, god forbid, _polite_.

"Okay." She said, instead, with broken Korean and probably the wrong words entirely. "I'll play you, then."

He gaped.

* * *

And here she was, scrawling away on her lap, head tilted into the cool window pane, hair long enough to fall from her shoulder and pool in the go ke, blonde mingling with shiny black stones. Her homework was only three quarters done. And the board, a story as unfinished as if it had been abandoned on the first page. Time ticked away, Sai whined, her head hurt.

Tick, tick, tick.

"You're early."

Yongha sat down opposite of her.

"Not really." She answered, and closed the math book, to glare at him. "You're late."

"Late isn't a word in my vocabulary." He scoffed. Words and verbal cues still confused her, but his haughty facial expression conveyed what she needed.

"You're a cocky bastard, is all." She stuffed the books into her bag as he glowered lazily, opening his go ke and setting the lid gently on the table.

"Where did you learn such crass language?"

She shrugged, and smoothed her skirt out. The dark blue plaid material was itchy, and so were the knee socks. "Around."

"It's unbecoming of a lady."

"I'm not a lady." She said, but the words were lost in translation, and she ended up saying something more along the lines of _"I'm a man" _then what she had originally intended. So she was rather confused when he contorted into laughter, and a full minute of him chuckling to himself ensued.

Sai clapped his hands in excitement as Yongha asked to Nigiri. They played. The outcome was obvious. Instead of gloating, which, in any situation other then go (which included that one time she kicked his ass in soccer, and that other time at the racing games at the arcade) she sat in silence as he shook his head at the board. When he said things under his breath like that, words she couldn't catch that were too quickly said, she wondered if she disappointed him somehow. Above her, Sai was moping morosely near the ceiling.

"What's wrong?" She asked finally, when he studied the maze of black and white for longer then usual.

There was something entirely ironic about the defeated posture of his shoulders. She wondered if he was going to ask her to join the Korean Insei program again. He'd asked before; she'd shot him down in flames. She had no intentions of turning professional—she wanted to get excellent grades, some how piece enough money together to go to a top college, become a doctor, make money. Who knows. She certainly didn't.

"Nah, it's nothing."

She shifted uneasily in her seat. Sai moaned from the corner of the room, where his head was now stuck in the plaster.

"Yongha…" She trailed off, feeling a little guilty. Apparently, the boy was a rising star in the insei program. He'd been cocky, of course. Being the best without any challenge did that to a kid with his looks and his grades. Obviously, that changed after Hikaru ruthlessly (or Sai, technically) taught him a lesson. He wanted her to join him so badly.

But she couldn't.

"Why the long face?" He had already stood up, by the time she had even gathered enough thoughts to string together a sentence.

"—eh?"

A smirk grew on his face. "Alright, so we did what I wanted to do. Now what's on your agenda?"

"Bad food." She replied hastily, and hoisted her back on her shoulders as her thin, numble fingers picked out the stones from the board. "Like Mcdonalds. Or ramen."

Yongha shriveled his nose.

* * *

The following year, Hikaru would move again. This time, back to Japan. She'd say goodbye to Yongha, who would wear a stormy, tumult of expressions on his face as he met her at the airport. The comm would chime, and a woman's beguiling voice would announce the seven o'clock flight to Tokyo, and she'd look up to the screen with the flight schedule, and wouldn't notice him stand closer. He'd grab the hem of her dress, effectively turning her around, the flowery pastel design wrinkling in his palms as he'd kiss her senseless, and _make _her promise to join the Insei program in Japan. Despite her better judgment, she'd lie, and agree.

The flight was particularly guilt wrenching, as she wondered how she'd explain her lack of presence in the Insei program to Yongha—and more importantly, her obviously different intentions with him then what he had for her. The boy next to her was her age, and, while cute, had a rather depressing face that seemed as if he wore it so often it clung to the edges of his eyes. He also wore a terrible argyle knit sweater that reminded her of the grumpy old people from the go salon.

He introduced himself, rather pleasantly and with such a polite smile that she couldn't help but compare her introduction to Yongha, in which the young Korean had sneered at her and asked, _"Well, you're a girl, so where's your chest?"_ and she had round kicked him in the face. But Touya Akira was much nicer, and instead of her shoe meeting the side of his cheek, she smiled sweetly at him.

So when he asked for a game of go—to pass the flight, as he was on his way back from a go convention he had been attending with his father—she could hardly refuse him.

When they met at his salon, months later, when he quietly but passionately asked her to join the Insei next year, she really couldn't refuse that either.

Sai was ecstatic, she was confused, Akira was pleased, and more importantly, she'd be meeting Yongha that summer, when he came to Japan for the North Star Cup.

* * *

_I'm deciding whether I'll continue this..._


	2. mist line

_A drabble series in dedication to the lost artist, Nujabes. _

_

* * *

_

Hikaru thought team Japan to look rather odd compared to the matched suits of the Chinese team. They all had long, intense faces and stone-like eyes, determination hard set in the lines of their noses. Yashiro had his hands behind his head, Akira looked just as intense and determined, but it was lost beneath the fringe of his dark hair, and Ochi took a distinct downward tilting of her head to look at, and thus the entire achievement of his contrary expression was lost. Outside, clouds gathered on the horizon, tempestuous and ominous. The North Star Cup was set to begin soon.

She wondered when the Korean team would show up.

Being an insei, the hushed news of the professional world was sort of hard to come by, but she'd heard from Akira that Yongha was on the Korean team. She was a bit surprised at that. She was infinitely less surprised to discover that he was a rising star and the apple of the Korean pro world's eye. Yongha was always destined for great things. She could tell, even lost in a country of different words and voices, watching the side of his face as he twirled his pen in his hands, eyes like storms.

It had been over a year since she'd seen the boy, however.

"You came too, huh?"

Shindou Hikaru tilted her face to the side, from where she had been leaning against the wall, sightlessly watching the many go players gathered at the center of the room.

Waya had his hands in his pockets, looking kind of miffed that he wasn't there standing next to the best, uprising pros, and that Ochi was. Hikaru nodded, brushing blonde hair out of her eyes. "Touya-kun invited me."

Waya seemed part surprised and part bothered by the fact that Touya would invite her, and that she would go. It annoyed him that Touya was so close to his childhood friend. Hikaru had always been _his_, this girl with sunny blonde hair and bright green eyes who balanced on bridges, wind in her face, hands outstretched into the sky, with beaten up converse high tops and ripped shorts. He could remember her in his third grade class-she had a wide smile and she was missing a tooth, but she had greeted him the loudest when she walked into their class that day. Her parents had died, she said, but the lost look of confusion had left her eyes. I've got a new friend though, she whispered conspiratorially into his ear. He was genuinely intrigued. His name's Sai, she stated and looked brave and proud at that. He's a ghost. Waya didn't believe her, but he thought that was pretty cool. They had been good friends after that.

Hikaru moved around to different places a lot, but she never lost her smile, her windy hair and cloudy eyes.

And she had always been his. His best friend.

"Invited you?" Waya snorted, shoving his hands deeper into his pockets. "He's gonna lose."

Hikaru's nose-small and pointy-shriveled, and her brows scrunched. "Don't say that."

"It's true." The redhead shrugged. "That Korean boy, Yongha, I think's his name, they say he's better then anyone. Even Touya would have a hard time with him."

The girl said nothing to this, and for a moment, Waya thought he struck a nerve. He didn't have time to question this, because Isumi had shifted through the crowd to join them, and the three took off into the main room, where all the games would be played. Hikaru was more concerned at meeting Yongha after all these years. She'd only lived in Korea for a year, and while SAIS seemed like a perfect fit at the time, Shinra Prepratory Academy ended up being a much more convenient fit, and she had moved back to Japan. But she wouldn't forget her only friend in Korea. They hadn't talked much after she left. She didn't have a phone at the time, Yongha couldn't write Japanese, and she was abysmal at writing Korean. In the end, she figured that there paths would never cross in life, and she'd never see the boy with wild hair and stormy eyes again. How wrong she had been...

They moved into the room where everyone had crowded into. It seemed she had missed a lot in her musings, because the room was mostly full. They'd most likely be starting the beginning ceremonies soon. Hikaru shifted in her seat. Touya was her age, and yet he was already playing at such professionally. So was Yongha. To think...they were only sixteen. Sai mulled about the room, looking distraught. He had wanted her to be here too, so he could play the great upcoming professionals. But Hikaru was still an insei, and the pro exam was only three weeks in-it hardly mattered that Sai got to dominate young insei, when here he was, so close to the dream, yet unable to touch it-and it would take a lot more then a flashy record to get to where Touya was.

Hikaru had become used to Go, she supposed. Sai clearly enjoyed the game, relished it, worshiped it even. But Hikaru couldn't say her interest in it was even a flickering light compared to the brilliant flashing sun of his passion for the game. She probably wasn't even the greatest host for him, either. She would rather spend her time shopping then at a go salon, she'd rather sleep then study kifu. After-game discussions made her yawn, and sitting so long on her knees made her joints ache. She hadn't even become all that roused when Yongha inadvertently insulted Sai. She supposed it had just been some sort of misinterpretation on the linguist's part, and had left it at that. Sai had fumed for days.

The players were about to enter the stage when her phone vibrated in her pocket.

Waya felt it, and sighed. "You're supposed to turn those off!"

"Sorry," She whispered sheepishly, moving to get out of her seat. "I forgot I even had it."

She stepped out of the rows of seats delicately, her heels snagging on someone's bag and she almost tripped embarrassingly into the aisle. Hikaru didn't even notice the trailing eyes as she left. The managers had just begun their speech as she moved to leave the room, which had dimmed evidently in chatter as the stage became the center of attention.

Hikaru was entirely unaware of Yongha's moving gaze as she shifted soundlessly through the crowd.

"Suyon," He mused aloud, a poignant look to his face as he brought the rim of his glass to his lips. "Have I ever told you about an old friend of mine who played Go?"

The younger Korean looked up from where he had been staring at the ground, a look of surprise as he shook his head. "I don't think so." He admitted, before asking curiously. "Was he any good?"

"Very." The auburn haired boy nodded. "I never won."

"Well that's to be expected." Suyon frowned. "If it was from a long time ago, you most likely weren't very good." The younger Korean pointed out.

Yongha tilted his head, watching a flutter of blonde as the girl disappeared into the hallway. "Even now, I don't think the outcome would change any." He set his glass down, intent on chasing Hikaru into the hallway, when he was interrupted by a voice.

_"We will now have a few words from our young players."_

The Korean team manager approached him. "Yongha, you go."

The boy frowned as he shook out his hair. His eyes trailed over to where the doors lead into the hallway. The flicker of light hair was now only a memory.

He shrugged. "Alright."

* * *

_: i don't remember how old hikaru was at the hokuto cup. so she's sixteen. _


	3. under the hood

_:) poor Hikaru, so lost.._

* * *

"Wha?" Hikaru frowned, squinted, and hunched more over her phone in a useless attempt to keep out the loud clatter from the outside of the parlor. "No, Akari—it's not like that."

She turned her head back as she heard the slight cough of a speaker beginning to start. And then, fervently, "I'll call you back, okay? I'm missing it."

"Yeah, I'll give them back to you." The blonde groused, rubbing the pointed heels against her calves. "They itch around the ankles and I've caught them on just about everything possible. Okay, yeah. Alright, see you then."

She hung up, and was about to tip toe back into the room in the most plausibly quiet way available—which at this point, seemed to be sneaking in from one of the side doors and attempting to make her way back to the center seats where Waya had insisted they sit—when one of the ushers halted her.

"I'm sorry ma'am," Said the woman with short hair, although she didn't look very sorry at all. "We can't allow anyone back in until after the opening ceremonies are over."

Hikaru wanted to point out that the entire notion seemed incredibly pointless. Weren't the opening ceremonies there so that people could hear them? And how were they supposed to when most of them were still loitering out in the hall?

However, Hikaru said nothing, only nodded and pushed her weight back and forth. The stewardess glared at her hair, and Hikaru pretended not to notice. Meanwhile, Sai had figured out that he was, indeed, a ghost, and could in fact roam where he pleased, and had taken to popping his head on the other side of the wall.

"_That boy looks awfully familiar." _He commented.

"_Really?" _Hikaru strained her ears to listen, but all she could hear above her fellow patrons out in the hall was a muffled tone. _"Maybe it's Akira?"_

"_It's not Akira." _Sai moved closer, until most of his torso had disappeared. _"He's got red hair."_

"_Yongha?" _Hikaru thought, puzzled. Yongha had hardly seemed the type for public speaking back when she knew him. Maybe he had changed. Perhaps Waya was right, and the guy was a jerk face. Admittedly, Waya himself was a vindictive ass and mostly called everyone else the same, so his opinion was sort of biased.

"_He's saying—" _And then, furiously, "_How dare he!"_

Hikaru's head whipped around. "_How dare he what?" _She echoed, puzzled. Sai didn't answer however, if anything he disappeared even more into the wall.

Irritated, the girl crossed her arms and dropped into a chair.

And accidentally dozed off.

.

.

.

By the time Waya had the good sense to prod her awake, the entire tournament was already over.

"You slept through it?" Waya said, disbelieving. "How is that possible?-!"

"I dunno…" Hikaru shrugged sleepily, yawning. "I didn't get a good sleep last night."

Waya scoffed, looking livid. "It's like you don't care about Go at all…"

Well, there could be some truth in that…

"That's not true!" Hikaru protested, to the immediate opposite of her prior thought. Around them, the crowds sifted like ebbing tides. She couldn't make out any familiar faces however. Most likely, the majority of her Go-obsessed friends would be inside participating in the after match discussion. "How'd it go?" She tactfully changed the subject.

But if anything, Waya only glowered more. "We lost."

Hikaru's brows knit. "Oh no… what was the end result?"

"Ochi got his ass kicked." Snorted the redheaded boy, looking a little too smug at the very thought. "Hmm… Yashiro lost, but he put up a good fight. And Touya, well, he won…" Waya looked away thoughtfully. "Not much of a victory though."

"Eh?" The blonde tilted her head, confused. Sai had plopped beside her, nodding to Waya's words. "What do you mean?"

Even as an Insei, almost completely immersed in Go, much of the culture—hell, much of it in general—was still kind of lost on her.

"Well, he won by one point. But I coulda swore Yeongha had him beat." The redhead narrowed his eyes. "That guy… he's crazy good."

"Really?" Hikaru looked away, unsure of how to feel about that. On one side, she'd always been aware that Yeongha was a very skilled Go player. But she definitely hadn't the depth in Go to fully grasp _how _good.

Waya nodded. "The whole Korean team was pretty tough. Well, actually, so was the Chinese. Japan doesn't have a lot of talented new younger players…" His eyes turned to Hikaru. "Well, not yet anyway."

Hikaru made a face.

"Why don't we go inside for the discussion?" Waya continued on, much to Sai's pleasure.

"_Ne, ne, let's go Hikaru!" _Sai tugged invisibly at her sleeve. _"It'll be fun!"_

_Doubtful, _The girl thought, but entered anyway.

As she had predicted, the majority of the crowd was still lingering inside, loitering for the post game discussion. All the team members were assembled, and a large screen was showing the board. Currently, Team Japan and Team China were going over their games, much to the intense interest of the 'ooh-ing' and 'ahh-ing' crowd.

It had only taken a split second before her eyes met Yeongha's from across the room.

And it only took a split second for her to drop them back down.

So he remembered her after all.

"—_Insulted Shuusaku!" _Sai was saying, furiously. _"I take offense to that!"_

"_Huh_?" Hikaru looked towards the ghost. _"Yeongha did?"_

"_Yes!" _The ghost nodded fervently. _"I heard it!"_

Hikaru scratched her nose. Sure, Yeongha had always been a bit of a jerk, but would he really have done something like that—? _"Are you sure it wasn't just a translation error?" _She pointed out thoughtfully.

Sai harrumphed, but seemed to understand. "_Maybe._" He decided upon, petulantly. "_Ne, Hikaru, why don't you go ask him?" _

"_Me?" _She echoed, blushing. Actually, she'd been hoping not to talk to him at all.

"Hikaru!"

She looked up then, Isumi flagging her down to where him and Waya and a few other people she vaguely remembered were recreating one of the games.

The girl moved over, peering down into the black and white abyss that had them all captivated. Detachedly, she thought the pattern looking a bit like a lopsided smiley face. Sai, however, thought differently, making a thoughtful, deliberating noise.

"Right here." Waya pointed to the upper left corner. "What do you think of this trap?"

"Uh…" The girl began, hesitantly.

"_Well played," _Sai murmured. _"It caused the opponent to take gote unnecessarily. The tenuki must have thrown him off."_

"It was well played." She echoed aloud. "Touya's tenuki threw him off, and Lu Li ended up taking gote unnecessarily."

Though it made little sense to her, the small amassed crowd nodded quietly in agreement. They moved on to finer points in the game, Hikaru fought the urge to yawn, and Sai continued to peer curiously into the board.

"_Touya is such a remarkable player," _Sai mused, grinning. _"There's such kiai in his moves—yet he's very aware of being too aggressive."_

"_Yeah?" _Hikaru muttered distractedly, not understanding a word of what Sai was saying. How strange, that you could learn so much about a person by this simplistic little board game.

The blonde decided that she may as well get some cold water—it'd probably wake her up a little more than watching a whole bunch of people discuss a board game she didn't understand. She'd taken about two sips out of her cup when she saw Yeongha approaching from the corner of her eye. He sure didn't waste any time.

"So you've become an insei." The boy—no, man… wait, not quite—began in flawless Japanese.

Hikaru gave him an irritated look. "You didn't need a translator at all, did you?"

Yeongha shrugged. "It has its uses." And then, "So you are an insei."

Hikaru nodded, finally taking a good look at the Korean professional. His hair was a little longer, the cut of his chin stronger and he had a more pronounced, if not foreign nose. "Taking the pro exam right now."

"A flawless record, I presume."

"Something like that." Hikaru smiled. "Do you still attend SAIS?"

"I no longer attend school." Yeongha waved off dismissively. "Professional Go takes up all my time."

Hikaru frowned at that. That seemed to be a common theme among Go professionals—they're lives were focused entirely on Go. It was one of the things she had deliberated the most on. If anything signing up for the Pro Exams temerariously had been a rash decision on her part, and one she hadn't quite understood at the time.

"You've gotten better." She said, for lack of anything else to say. He probably had, though she wouldn't be aware of it.

He smirked. "I'm sure you have as well."

Next to her, Sai nodded fervently.

"_Hikaru, Hikaru!" _The ghost nudged her shoulder. _"Ask him for a game!"_

"_Now?" _The blonde thought, incredulously.

The ghost nodded. _"I want to see how much better he is!"_

"_Alright." _Hikaru shrugged. It would pass the time, anyway. "How bout a game?" She asked, aloud this time. Yeongha blinked, and she smiled playfully at him. "To see how much you've improved."

"Don't expect to win so easily this time." Yeongha said in agreement, a glint in his eyes.

The Korean directed her to one of the empty tables, where an unused goban was at the far end of the room. The majority of them were taken by professionals and go enthusiasts recreating games, she noted.

The two sat down, and Hikaru grabbed a handful of white stones. When she laid them down though, she noticed Yeongha's eyes weren't even on the board—but on her.

The blonde blushed, looking down to where Yeongha had successfully guessed her stones.

"I'm white, then." She said, more to herself then to the other boy. Beside her, Sai wore that look of concentration on his face. When she looked back at Yeongha, the expression was mirrored. It seemed the only one who wasn't serious… was her.

Hikaru sighed.

"_I think I've been inspired." _Sai mused with a grin. _"Why don't we start with the Tengen?"_

If Yeongha was surprised with the center opening, he didn't show it. Instead, the Korean began a ruthless offensive at the upper right corner, one which Sai seemed to handle easily. There was a lull as Yeongha took his time before his next move, in which Hikaru wondered what it must be like to truly understand this game. She eyed Yeongha once more, his dark eyes lingering on the abstract patterns of monochrome stones. There was passion in his face, a burning which she doubted was on hers at all. Sai had it too, that determined crease to his brow and the narrow line of his lips. What did her face look like? Bored? Sleepy, probably.

She missed the watchful gazes of the other spectators, of Way and Isumi pausing from their discussion, of Akira's narrowed gaze as Yeongha pulled her to the secluded corner.


	4. vargancy

_I've read a lot of fem!Hikaru's where the girl Hikaru is just like the boy Hikaru, a little brash and stubborn but very adaptable and bubbly. Actually, I've also written one, haha! I always seem to imagine a serious, more studious Hikaru. Well, then again her parents have died and all that stuff, so I'm sure that leaves a remarkable impression on one's psyche. But I also like having the juxtaposition of Sai's strength to her nonchalance—it's absurd._

* * *

"They're friends?" Waya asked, exasperatedly, a crease in his brows.

Isumi shrugged, placing another stone down among the growing cluster of melded black and white. "Apparently so." And then, "Do you think Touya was right to play this hane?"

"But when?" The redhead began, as if uninterrupted. "It's not like she was in Korea for very long—they couldn't have met there, right?"

"Waya. this move right here—

"Who cares about Touya and his stupid moves!" Waya hissed, throwing a pointing hand in the direction of Yeongha and Hikaru. "Doesn't it annoy you she's over there with that jerk?-!"

"Not particularly, no." Isumi said smoothly, having the good decency to _not _look annoyed. Everyone else watching the recreation, though… "Shindou can be friends with whomever she likes."

"Within reason!" Waya rebutted. "We gotta watch out for her, you know. God knows she's got a soft spot for every boy with long, pretty hair—

At this, the redhead shot a severe look to Touya, who was obliviously continuing on answering questions at the far end of the room.

"I wouldn't consider Touya's to be particularly long." Fuku cut in.

"And don't you think you're being a bit overbearing?" Nase narrowed her eyes, looking annoyed, as she placed another stone down as Lu Li. "After all, Isumi-san has a point."

Waya harrumphed, but said nothing. Figures, there'd be another guy with long hair grabbing all the attention from his best friend. Touya was mildly acceptable, in the most strained sense of the word. Yeongha, well that was pushing it. Touya was like that unintentionally jerky smart kid who didn't mean to rub it in your face but kind of did anyway. And Yeongha, well, Yeongha was the kid who was just an intelligent ass purposefully.

"I don't think they're recreating a game…" Fuku commented, his eyes moving away from their recreation and to where Yeongha was intensely staring into the board in front of him. "He looks pretty serious."

At this, both Nase and Isumi looked up, heads swiveling to the far corner.

"You think so?" Waya squinted in their direction. True to Fuku's words, Yeongha looked deep in thought—and not in the good way, either. Hikaru just looked put upon, but that was typical for her.

"Ahh—" Isumi blinked. "He looks…"

Waya's eyes narrowed. "Like he's playing a game!"

The redhead stormed over, intent on getting to the bottom of this dilemma. True to his intuition, Ko Yeongha's face was pinched into an expression which could only be described as desperate seriousness. Unimaginable, considering he faced down Touya Akira with eyes like stones.

And yet Shindou, an _insei, _could draw such veracious emotion to his face.

Granted, she happened to be the most frighteningly talented insei he—and the rest of the Go world, at that—had ever seen. There were few that would deny the claim that she could hold her own among the top pros, after seeing her play, anyway.

_He sought her out. _Waya noted. _He must have known beforehand that she was good—but how?_

Waya turned to Shindou, who contrary wise had a morbidly uninterested look to her face. Sometimes Waya just couldn't understand it—how could such a talented Go player wear a look of such boredom? Could she really find the intricate game so uninteresting?

When he looked back up again, he hadn't realized the crowd which had amassed around them. He wasn't surprised to see Isumi to his left, nor Nase to his right. He was a little disturbed to see Ochi above Yeongha's left shoulder—considering the guy must have sprinted out of his hole at the pit of the bathroom. But it was Touya's face which struck him the most. He looked… disappointed?

No one could fault the guy, as much as some (like Waya) may want to. He did play an excellent game, and if him and Yeongha were to meet again, he certainly wouldn't be betting any money on Yeongha. So there really wasn't anyway to justify such a wrenching look. As if detecting someone noticing, when Waya looked up again Touya's face was nothing but impassivity.

Yeongha paused in one of his moves, looking into the gathered eyes.

"We've attracted a crowd." He noted solemnly.

Waya blinked.

Wait—

"You spoke Japanese this whole time?-!" He sputtered.

Murmurs grew low in the air.

Yeongha's expression turned irritated. "Hikaru."

The girl looked up. Isumi put a steadying hand on Waya as the guy looked ready to fly off the handle with such an informal address.

"Why don't we continue this somewhere else?" He asked, pleasantly enough.

Hikaru, finally sensing the amassed crowd, turned a little pink as she nodded.

Yeongha stood then, clearly not worried about picking up where they left off. Knowing that jerk, he probably had an eidetic memory or something. Waya made a face behind his back as he left, Shindou in tow. He woulda beat the crap outta that smug kid if Isumi would just let go of his shoulder.

Touya caught up to them easily enough, pulling Shindou away for a moment to briefly say something to her. Waya couldn't hear much, but Shindou's expression didn't change.

.

.

.

"_Don't take him lightly." Touya warned. _

Hikaru wondered why his face looked so sour—like he'd swallowed a pickled plum or something.

And anyway, it wasn't like she hadn't played Yeongha before. In fact, she'd played the Korean boy much earlier than she had Touya. Granted, it wasn't even her playing in the first place. Sai bounced around giddily as she followed Yeongha to his room.

"_He's really grown, Hikaru-chan!" _Sai beamed at her. _"He's really turned into a brlliant player!"_

Nothing made the ghost more happy than watching—and watering—the seeds of a new generation. The ghost turned to Hikaru. Now only if he could get this one to grow as well…

_Go isn't the only thing he's grown in. _Hikaru noted idly. He was taller, much taller than the evened height they had been at a few years ago. Probably a lot smarter, and—

"When did you learn Japanese?" She spoke, aloud this time. And, after a moment, "It's very good."

"Thank you." Yeongha blinked, looking genuine. For a moment, Hikaru could have sworn his cheeks lit up. "I have been studying it these past years."

"What for?" She asked, mildly curious.

She expected a typical Yeongha answer—to better myself, or something along those lines.

"So we will no longer have the language barrier." Was all he said instead.

Stunned, Hikaru could do nothing but follow him into his hotel room, where Suyong was idly flipping through manga. He bolted upright at the sight of them, scurrying over as Yeongha sat himself in front of their Goban, already beginning to recreate the game.

"S—Shindou-chan!" He stuttered, skidding to a halt in front of the Goban as she came over.

"Suyong-kun," She greeted. "How was your match?"

"I won." Said the Korean boy proudly, in Japanese.

Hikaru blinked, switching back as well. "So you've learned too?"

"I wanted to be able to challenge you!" The young boy exclaimed confidently, flabbergasting the girl further. "I wanted to be able to say, 'I am Hon Suyong'."

"You can certainly say more than that." Hikaru remarked, impressed. It seemed the two had begun learning together, then.

"Hikaru." Yeongha pulled her out of her thoughts, impatiently tapping the side of the Goban.

She dropped on the other side, immediately beginning the battle for the upper right corner anew.

Suyong watched in silence, more than a little jealous of Yeongha. After all, he had thought he'd found Hikaru first. She was… such an enigma to him, someone who had spent every free hour dedicating himself to a skill that seemed almost second nature to her. Not even Yeongha, the only genius he knew, could so easily defeat opponents—effortlessly, almost. He _knew _he had to challenge her that day at his Uncle's salon, not because she was the prettiest girl he'd ever seen, but because of that _look _in her eyes. That indifference. He had wanted to change it.

But, it seemed not even Yeongha's superior play could do that.

Yeongha led a valiant fight for the upper right, but Shindou's mesmerizing, brilliant play seized control of the entire right side of the board. Suyong had to take a second look at the formation at the bottom right; at first glance, it seemed like Yeongha had more territory. But Shindou…

She was on a whole other level.

_Who could beat that? _Suyong thought, bewildered.

No wonder Shindou had never lost to anyone she played.

Meanwhile, Sai was having a dilemma of his own. This complicated game wasn't going to teach Hikaru much, if even being his connection to the real world couldn't. Yet he hoped that perhaps it would stir something within her, that at least she'd come to enjoy the game. He may be a ghost, and he may exist for nothing but the divine move—but it seemed he now held nothing but guilt.

His existence was completely devouring hers.

It was Hikaru's life to live, after all, and yet here he was, almost living it for her. Hikaru would never accuse him of it, but Sai could see it in her eyes. There was no passion that lit up her face with burning determination, no sweat gathered at her brow for her to wipe away as it did with Yeongha.

Though to that extent, Hikaru had always been very serious about her studious, and little else.

"I resign." Yeongha sighed, though he didn't look upset. In fact, he almost looked a little relieved.

"_Oh?" _The ghost peered up at the boy. _"But you've grown, surely you can see! That was an excellent fight for the center."_

"You had a good fight in the center." Hikaru repeated feebly, wondering if Sai's praise would change the defeated relief on her friend's face.

"That may be true," Yeongha acceded, "But I was far from winning it."

"It's an improvement." The blonde smiled.

"You've grown too, Shindou-san!" Suyong noticed, wondering how that was even possible. "Your style has become more modernized."

"Hmmm?" Hikaru turned her eyes away from the board. "Oh, yes. Well, I suppose that was bound to happen. These are modern times."

"When we first played," Yeongha began, Hikaru accidently meeting his eyes. They seemed to burn into her. "Your hands were very classical; as if you'd studied kifu only from Shuusaku's age."

Suyong nodded. "But now, it's like you've caught up to more recent styles of play."

"You think so?" Asked the blonde thoughtfully. She hadn't noticed much, truthfully.

"It's impressive." Yeongha agreed.

"_Why thank you!" _Sai bowed politely by her side. _"I exist only to better the game—to reach for the hand of god!"_

_And what was the hand of god? _Hikaru wondered. Sai had never properly explained the ambiguous term.

"Thank you." Was all she said aloud, however. And then, "How long are you staying?"

"Until tomorrow," Suyong answered immediately, as Yeongha said at the same time, "I'm not sure yet."

The younger Korean looked up quickly. "Eh?-!" He blinked. "What do you mean? We all have the same flight back!"

Yeongha shrugged, his eyes never once leaving hers. "I don't have another match until next week," And then, "I feel I have more to learn here."

Hikaru got the distinct impression he was referring to her.

As did Sai. _"And I will be happy to teach you!" _Said the ghost, cheerily.

.

.

.


	5. battle cry

_I have so much beautiful fan art of Hikaru-chan :D I'll post it all soon!_

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.

.

True to his word, Yeongha did stay the whole week. Hikaru was sure Touya wouldn't be particularly pleased with the news, but the expressionless disregard was a little worrying.

"Alright." Was all he said, genially enough, as if he was confused as to why Hikaru even bothered to tell him.

_Some friend he is, _the girl snorted, though she wasn't actually certain they were friends at all. _I was only trying to do him a favor with the heads up._

They _were_ using his father's Go Salon, after all.

Yeongha scowled. "I have nothing."

Hikaru nodded. "Thank you for the game." She replied, cordially. Her eyes trailed up, to where Yeongha was watching her with an unreadable expression.

"Did you mean what you said?" She blurted, before her mind could fully catch up with the rest of her.

"About what?" Yeongha ran a hand through his hair, still looking more focused on the game.

"Shuusaku." Hikaru implied. "About how you think he's nothing."

Yeongha _definitely _looked up then. "I never said that." The boy swore. Before, with a smirk. "Did it insult you?"

"_Yes!" _Roared Sai.

"I figured it was a translation error." Hikaru said aloud, amiably enough. "Was it?"

"It was." Yeongha agreed. But he was smirking. "I can see how that would take offense to you, though. I can see it in your play—you must really respect Shuusaku."

Hikaru blinked. "I do?"

"You favor his diagonal frequently." Yeongha supplied, rather unhelpfully. She wasn't sure what, exactly, Shuusaku's diagonal was. "Even when it isn't used as much in modern play. I still see hints of your Joseki from before—it resembled his greatly."

"Huh." The girl digested this.

"_Well of course." _Sai sniffed. _"After all, it was me who played those too!"_

_And five hundred years later, I still… _Sai looked at his hands, a brief, but meaningful glance.

_I am still playing Go._

Hikaru took it all in stride, nodding and already beginning to clear the board. Yeongha stopped her, however, gripping her hand before she could remove the first one.

"Why did you counter-attack at 14-15?" He asked, quickly.

Hikaru looked up.

And then looked to Sai.

But the ghost was busy gazing into the depths of black and white stars, as if they held the meaning of the universe somewhere in their shining finish.

"_Sai!"_

He didn't look up.

"Well?" Yeongha continued.

"Uhh…" Her eyes flew to the stone in question, a glittering black stone, one of the many among others. Yet this one was farther away, it almost seemed to…

"If I hadn't," She began, "This shape could have formed into something more significant."

Yeongha took her words like a man upon water from a great draught. _What a strange game this is, _Hikaru thought, not for the first time, _to take such wisdom from what doesn't seem like anything. _

"_Sai."_

This time, _finally_, the ghost looked up.

"Ehhhh?"

Hikaru scowled. _"Great. Now you answer." _

"_You were saying something?" _Sai blinked.

"_14-15," _Her hand moved to the stone involuntarily. _"Why did you play here?"_

"_It cut off his shape." _Explained the ghost, as if it were clear as day. _"Though it was abstract, I knew that further in the game it could have been an issue."_

Hikaru blinked, more than a little surprised with herself.

So she'd been right.

"You read so far ahead into the game…" Yeongha murmured. "I thought you had just played a strange move… I hadn't even thought of that possibility until I had foreseen my loss."

Hikaru scratched her nose. "Well…"

"Very well played!" Exclaimed one of the men playing beside them. "Shindou-sensei is truly a pro among go players!"

"She's not even a pro!" Another interrupted. "She's an insei!"

"Yet she beats all the pros anyway!" Kitijima laughed heartily, and Hikaru flushed.

To think, all these people had such respect for her skill—when it wasn't even hers.

.

.

.

"It doesn't bother you, does it?"

Akira looked up from his pondering of Shindou's complex game, wondering how she managed to think of other things even as she played complicated hands.

"What doesn't?" He asked, a bit lost. Unlike Shindou, it was more difficult for him to multitask so easily.

"That Yeongha and I play here." She repeated aloud for him again.

_She acts like I hate the guy, _the older pro thought, exasperated. Though she wasn't entirely barking up the wrong tree—he certainly wasn't fond of the guy, either.

Akira shrugged. "It's fine." What else would it be?

She pursed her lips though, as if disbelieving. "You're sure?"

"I'm sure." He reaffirmed, before continuing onwards.

No surprise, Shindou had him beat. He wondered at how such marvelous ingenuity could come out of such a strange tenant—not to say Shindou looked strange. If anything, it was _strange _how pretty she was, the gentle curve of her lips and the bottle green eyes, the attractive face—

_She's my rival! _He thought, quickly veering away from wherever else that could take him. He couldn't think of her like this. Couldn't get distracted. How could he improve if he couldn't stop staring at her face?

As per usual, he was ready to dive right into the after game discussion; and, as per usual, Shindou was not.

"I'm really hungry." The girl bemoaned, before their conversation about her favored kosumi could delve deeper. "Can't we eat first?"

Though Akira couldn't fathom how she could think of food before the thought of an engaging, informative discussion on Go, he agreed anyway. It wasn't long before she hauled them both into what seemed to be a very frequented ramen shop, judging by her familiarity and easing way she slinked around the crowded tables.

"You do eat ramen, right?" She asked with a smile, not even touching her menu.

He peered down into the list of noodles. "Yes." He admitted. But not usually.

He looked back at Shindou, who looked ready to eat all the noodles in the shop and then some.

Certainly not as much as her.

It wasn't long before they ordered—and boy, could Shindou talk about _ramen_—and the girl was explaining to him why chicken miso was better than the shrimp tempura ramen when a sudden thought struck him.

"Shindou," He cut her off politely, and the girl blinked. "Why do you play Go?"

A look of puzzlement passed her features. "Eh?" Her eyebrows tilted in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"You must have a reason," He pointed out, growing confused himself. After all, it wasn't exactly the most common profession of choice, especially not for a girl like Shindou. She could be a model if she wanted to, but she was studious enough to get into a good college like Osaka or Tokyo.

"A reason…" Shindou tapped the table with her chopstick thoughtfully. Akira thought she might have something deep to say, before she scratched her head. "Haha... I don't really know!"

"You don't know?" He echoed, numbly.

"Is it not enough to just be good at it?" Hikaru supposed aloud. She was still smiling, but her eyes looked like they were lost in something he couldn't see.

Akira blinked. "I guess so." But that certainly wasn't an acceptable answer to him. _Do you really want to play at all? _Was what he had wanted to ask, but it wouldn't work its way out of his throat.

Perhaps he just didn't want to know the answer.


	6. moon strut

_oddly enough I'm always into HnG during Christmas. Also, I found out my school has a legit Go club. Although I use the term 'legitimate' quite loosely. There's a rather eclectic bunch of kids who crowd around some second rate goban in the tech room. sound familiar?_

* * *

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.

.

"I'm leaving in two days." Yeongha began, after he had resigned.

Hikaru had already begun picking away at the board, used to the steadying rhythm of the game from start to finish and almost hadn't heard him. "Huh?"

"For back home." The Korean reiterated.

Luckily enough, Akira wasn't here today. He'd come in yesterday—and Hikaru couldn't really fault him for that, as it was his father's Go Salon—to find the two of them deep in a complex game that looked like it could have been a Title match with its skill.

And, as Hikaru predicted, he hadn't been particularly happy. Nevertheless, he didn't interrupt them; probably too polite for that. Although on that note, he hadn't stayed for very long either.

_I hope he wasn't too upset… _Hikaru moped, not wanting to think back to that.

"We won't be able to play." He began again, looking upset at the thought.

Hikaru shrugged. "We wouldn't have been able to, anyway." And then, to his questioning glance, "I have the Pro Exams coming up."

"Pro Exams?" His face lit up in delight. "So then you'll become a Pro."

"I have to pass first." Hikaru pointed out, dryly.

"There's no question of that." Was Yeongha's immediate answer.

Actually, it seemed to be _everyone's _answer. She hadn't met a single person, from Waya to Isumi to even Akira, who didn't have unwavering faith in her ability to pass. People were already beginning to call her part of the New Wave, Akira calling her his rival certainly not helping her sudden stroke of publicity.

_But I'm not! _She wanted to point out.

Alas, that would only confuse the situation further, so she only kept quiet.

Yeongha only tilted his head back towards the board, idly gazing upon the enormous entity of her unyielding puissance, so complex the game was that even he could hardly follow the labyrinthine of her play. Such an alarmingly inhuman power, burning just beneath the surface of those malachite green eyes.

"We'll meet again, then." He decided upon with frank assurance. "In the world of the pros."

Hikaru nodded, picking away at the dark stones.

_The pros.._

The looming world above her, somehow already rattled by the skill of a young Insei, yet clearly sovereign in their own right. Sai cowered them, and yet, continuously made them yearn for more. There were more than a few pros who had asked _her_ for games—the only conduit for the patron Go saint.

They left together, Yeongha back to his hotel to pack for his flight home, and Hikaru to maunder as she liked, a brief reprieve from the constant, circuitous cycle of Go her life had become. Perhaps she could call Akari for some shopping, grab some mint chip from the ice cream parlor down the street, or even peruse the Shounen Jump at the local bookstore. At one point, she'd spent the majority of her carefree life doing a handful of mundane, entertaining tasks like those—but the assiduous nature of her self-made diligence won out, and then there was little else but books.

_Books, and Go, _She mused.

"Have safe trip." Hikaru said in polite parting, unsure of how else to say goodbye to someone who was quickly becoming an old friend.

Yeongha looked at her—she found this oddly amusing, because at one point, he'd have to have stood on quite a few stairs above her to achieve the same effect—down the narrow bridge of his nose, eyes glittering amber in the afternoon sunlight.

"We'll meet again." He remarked airly, and yet there was a perceived darkness to his eyes she couldn't quite catch.

Hikaru nodded slowly. "My friend Isumi took a tour of China—I was thinking of doing the same with Korea." She scratched her cheek. "After all, I can speak it."

"Your Korean is barely passable." Yeongha waved her off in perfect Japanese. "It's insulting."

The blonde frowned. "Hey…"

Sai watched reservedly from the mask of his fan, tilted beneath his eyes to create a look of impassivity to the ghost's usually energetic face.

"I will come back." He announced shamelessly. "Once I have won a title of my own."

"That's not exactly easy, you know…" She noted warily, wondering where his almost arrogant confidence seemed to sprout from.

"Regardless," He began anyway. "Perhaps then I will have more merit against you."

At this, she said nothing again. But what was she _to _say? After all, it wasn't her skill to hold against—for him to test against like an insurmountable mountain.

"Yeongha—

But he cut her off with a solid, bold kiss to the mouth, much different than the almost naïve one he'd given her at the airport full of skittish, boyish unassurance and almost reticent coyness.

"I will catch up to you, Hikaru." He said clearly, looking almost turbulent with his invidious piety; as if he was both repelled and enticed at the very thought of her. "If only you would turn to look."

Regardless of what she could have replied with, he turned at that, leaving her to dazedly gaze at his fading figure, already tangled into the swell of people ebbing with the traffic lights.

"_Hikaru…" _Sai's voice was soft, and muffled by the fan which was spread over the bottom of the face. _"That boy… he likes you."_

Hikaru watched him go numbly, a demure finger to her lips. The spider-like hands of lighting dashed across his hair, and the eruption of the red sky behind him. The searing glow to his tawny eyes, as he observed the game beneath them with both enmity and longing. When those eyes turned to her, with that same envious veneration.

"No," She amended into the quiet, gelid air. "It's _you _he likes_._"

.

.

.

She wasn't too surprised with Yeongha staying an extra week, but when the girl bumped into Suyong on her way out of the train station, she was more than a little confused.

"Suyong-kun?" She blinked. "What are you still doing here?"

"Still doing—?" Suyong repeated aloud, before shaking his head and continuing something in rushed Korean which Hikaru couldn't catch.

For a moment, neither said anything, Sai hanging between them looking just as lost as she was.

"I left, but came back. I am taking time in Japan." He worded carefully. "To learn more."

"Oh." Hikaru paused, and then, "Oh! Like a sabbatical."

Suyong nodded hesitantly.

"Huh, but I thought you thought Japan was weak?" The girl recalled, remembering Suyong retorting that to her, or something along those lines, back when they had played at his Uncle's salon. He had always been kind of a spoiled brat, the girl admitted privately to herself. At least he seemed to have grown up a bit more recently though.

"Not weak." The Korean amended. "Just not strong enough. However, the Hokuto Cup has shown me many strong players in Japan." And then, "Also, Shindou-chan and Touya-san are very strong, commendable players. Japan has many young pros to offer…"

At this, his eyes narrowed.

Hikaru pondered this. There was a glint to his eyes, one she recognized from being on the receiving end of it so frequently. _Rivalry. _But with who? Yashiro-kun?

"I have been at the Japanese Go Institute for three days now." Suyong began anew, as they made their way through the shifting crowds to the association. "But I have not found my opponent from the tournament. Do you know Yashiro Kiyoharu 2-Dan?"

"Yashiro…kun?" Hikaru repeated aloud. "Oh, Suyong-kun, he doesn't play at the Tokyo Institute."

Suyong was just plain confused. "So he doesn't play here?"

Hikaru shook her head. "No, he's at the Kansai Institute."

"And how far is that?" The Korean asked slowly.

Hikaru shook her head. "I'm sorry, I don't know." And at the boy's faltering disappointment. "But why don't we head back to the Association? They can give you directions." And quite possibly a cab, which while more expensive, would probably confuse him less than taking a train.

So Hikaru's first day of the pro exams started with Suyong in tow, the boy commenting on how surprised he was that someone of Hikaru's caliber was still an Insei. The girl explained that she had only decided to turn pro last year—something which actually seemed to surprise the young Korean pro more. As if he hadn't ever thought of a career for himself aside from Go.

'"But Shindou-chan is…" The boy began with a flicker of awe. "Terrifying."

"Oh, uh…" _Was that supposed to be insulting? _"Well thank you?"

As if sensing his translations were off, the young pro shook his head. "No, I mean to say it is very good. I've never met anyone like Shindou-chan—she is on a level above the rest."

"_How kind of you to say so!" _Sai floated in front of the boy, looking decidedly pleased. Then a dark look passed his face. _"But there is one other who strives for the same thing I do; another who could beat me to it."_

Hikaru peered up to him curiously. _"Who are you talking about, Sai?"_

"_That man—Touya-kun's father." _

"_The Meijin?" _Hikaru blinked. "_I mean, ex-Meijin?"_

Sai nodded.

"Shindou-chan?"

Hikaru broke out of her thoughts, shaking her head. "Oh, right. Well that's nice of you to say, Suyong-kun, but I'm sure there are many people to play, and many skilled pros out there!"

Suyong looked reluctant to agree, as if he'd already clearly placed Hikaru at the paramount of all other pros.

They reached the association quickly enough, Hikaru bidding the boy a fond farewell after she helped him understand the directions the receptionist was telling him. It took a lot of Japanese, and Korean, for him to figure it out, but eventually he was on his way to the Kansai institute to challenge Yashiro to a rematch.

_Rivals, _Sai thought, longingly. _Equals._

Hikaru looked up at him questioningly, wondering why he worse such a melancholic look to his usual jovial face.

"_Cheer up, Sai!" _She berated him. _"Our first opponent is Honda-kun!"_

"_Honda?"_

"_Yeah." _And then, with a wry smile. _"That must stink for him to start out with one loss."_

"_My, so confident in my abilities!" _Sai clapped his hands. _"But yes. I don't intend to lose."_

"_I don't think you _can _lose." _Hikaru rolled her eyes. At least, not to an Insei, anyway.

Sai looked away, eyes burning. _No, Hikaru… _He pursed his lips, fan sliding open silently to obscure his face. _There is one, perhaps…_

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* * *

_Happy holidays kids. _


	7. just forget

The ex-Meijin regarded his son with rising trepidation, not necessarily surprised by the tumultuous expression he wore, yet still concerned by it. Akira had always been incomparable, and though the once professional Go player knew that the majority of his son could be found in the sky of the board, his answers weren't lit in white stars. After all, Akira had always been a child of mild temperament—and even that was perhaps not a good thing—and this much expression to him almost seemed healthy in comparison to the general benign acceptance he carried.

"Are you feeling well, Akira?"

His son looked up, startled.

In that brief flash of emotion, he managed to read a quick mixture of surprise, anguish… and some sort of burning, stirred anger.

_Anger_? He thought, owlishly. That was certainly new.

"I'm fine, father." His son looked away, face once more ossified into polite stone.

_But maybe Akira had changed_, his father mused, as the boy played another stone. Children always managed to change on you, and he supposed his son would be no exception. Especially at this age. But from what… ?

.

.

.

"_It's not like that!"_

And yet, it seemed _everyone _assumed it was.

Including her one-thousand year old ghost companion.

Sai huffed, looking like an enormous, flouncy poodle at the bottom of her bed with his elaborate silk costume pooling out around him. It must be rather fortunate that he wasn't alive to feel how tedious such an outfit could be, and too long of a time since he could to recall.

"_He _kissed _you, Hikaru-chan!" _Sai was quick to point out.

She rolled her eyes, collapsing onto her bed. _"It's different now." _She waved him off dismissively. "_People kiss each other all the time in this day and age. Hell, there are mostly naked women on billboards! That stuff isn't like you remember it."_

Sai supposed this was true. There _were_ an obscene amount of scantily clothed women, blown up on enormous paintings in the most obvious of places. And he had seen quite a few terrifying displays of public affection, that would have scandalized many a woman in his day—so Hikaru did have a point. The present was… much more open than the past. That being said however, passion hadn't changed one bit, and Sai, having much of it himself, could see it from miles off.

Especially when it lit in young men—or in this case, one man's—eyes.

"_So you say." _The ghost sniffed, fan blooming across the bottom of his face. _"But be careful with him, Hikaru-chan. I can assure you his… intentions toward you are much different than yours to him."_

She only gave him a flat look in return. _Maybe not as much as you might think. _She thought, annoyed.

Hikaru may be called oblivious quite a lot, but there was a certain line between dense and selective seeing. Yeongha wasn't exactly subtle with his advances, anyway.

No, the confusion lay in what _she _felt for him.

"_I'm not that dense." _She responded, after mulling for a while. And then, with a sleepy yawn. "_I just really don't want to deal with it."_

Sai gawked, sputtering. _"Not wanting to deal with it isn't going to make it go away!"_

The girl groaned, rolling over and burrowing into her comforter. _"He's in Korea! _That _will make it go away."_

Sai pouted. _Yeongha, perhaps…_

Touya, however, wasn't going anywhere.

Not to mention Waya, who was possibly just as obvious, if not more so than the Korean. He had a jealousy streak six miles wide and Hikaru _still _somehow managed to be completely unaware of it. Of course, whether that was because he was protective of their friendship or because he had other intentions towards her was left obscure.

And Touya, well, Sai couldn't really fault her for that. Considering she hardly even had the rudimentary knowledge of Go, she couldn't read him as well as he could. He was a very reserved young man, certainly, polite and stand-offish and subtle with everything he did. In person, anyway. On the board, his emotions rang clear as if they were written in bold lettering over the board—if only Hikaru could read them! Sai could feel his indecisiveness, his insecurities and all the moments he attempted to convey something to the girl across the board who was literally blind and deaf to his words.

Sai shook his head in empathy for the unfortunate, young pro. _His efforts go entirely wasted! Poor Touya… she'll never know.._

Speaking of the younger Touya, Sai noticed that after Yeongha's return to Korea, he was quickly becoming a permanent staple of Hikaru's every day life. Though she still attended her rigorous choice in schooling, he managed to incessantly nag her into his father's Go Salon. Though Sai could tell that Hikaru was less than pleased by this.

"We've been playing Go for the past…" She checked the clock on the wall. "Three hours! Don't you want to do something else?"

Touya looked up at her as if she was speaking a foreign language. And then, cautiously, "Like what?"

Hikaru huffed, drumming on the table next to the board. Man… even her fingers were sore! How was that even possible? "I dunno," She let out a breath of irritation. "Movies? Arcade? _Food_?"

"None of that sound nearly as absorbing as Go."

_To you, maybe. _Hikaru thought sourly. Unfortunately for her, she was a normal human being, who enjoyed the normal gambit of entertainment for 'hanging out' with other teenage friends.

Of course, the subheader of friends when applied to Akira was ambiguous enough as it was. To consider them even remotely 'hanging out' was something of a stretch. Hikaru wasn't truly sure what they were. Rivals, most certainly. And yet so were her and Waya, and Isumi, and hell, she would be quicker to consider _Ochi _a friend than Touya. At least they had gone to an arcade once or twice with the Insei group. Touya seemed to have taken personal offense at their ramen outing.

But, if they were to be called friends, than clearly he was being rather impolite. After all, when hanging out with friends, it was only customary to do something unanimously enjoyed. That, or at least have the common decency to take turns.

And with that thought, she stood.

"Then have fun playing with yourself." She sniffed, standing and tugging at the hem of her shorts. "I'm going for a walk. My legs are starting to cramp."

"Shindou!" He called, half up from his chair, and looking like he was moving with great reluctance. "Hold on!"

Hikaru continued onwards, ghost companion invisible by her side as they strode out of the Go Salon

"Shindou—wait!"

She paused at the threshold of the elevator, spinning smartly on one foot and pinning him with a snappish look.

He approached her in quick strides, and they waited for the elevator together, in relative silence. He half wondered if she was upset—and if so, why? The very idea of her baffled him. Did she not want to play Go? And yet, how could she not? Clearly from every move she played she lavished the game with unyielding adoration, but every time he glanced at her face it was a terrifying mix of exasperated boredom and impatience. At what? His playing? There were so many unanswered questions which only served to confuse him more.

The elevator slid open, and the two entered, still in heady silence. Halfway down the ride he finally swallowed his initial apprehension to dare a question.

"Have I upset you?"

She looked up quickly at that, giving him a measured look. "No." The blonde said at length.

He changed a quick glance at her.

"I was just getting restless." She clarified, scratching her hair. "Three hours of staying in the same spot is a little tedious."

"There are many matches that go past longer than that."

She looked up then, horrified. "Pro matches?"

He nodded. "Of course."

_Oh god, no. _

_And then the after match discussions! _Sai clapped his hands. _So much Go!_

The very idea of it instilled within her a vague sense of alarm. She fidgeted slightly. "Oh. Well… I was… just getting a little—" Don't say bored, don't say bored, "tired of it. I thought we could change it up or something."

"Change it up?" He echoed, bewildered. "Why?"

The doors slid open, and the two walked out into the main lobby. She shrugged. "I dunno. To do other things?"

He made a face. "Shindou, I still wanted to play Go."

"And I wanted to do something else!" She retorted hotly. "There's more to life than Go, you know."

At this he stopped, looking at her with clear hesitation. The automatic doors slid open, and a gust of cool, summer night air flew past them.

"Shindou…" She blinked up at him. A thousand questions curled into the bottom of his throat, all of them wrestling to make it off his tongue, and yet he was still deliberating, unsure if he truly wanted to know the answer…

"Do you not like playing Go?"

Her eyes widened, and she looked the other way, one hand curling into the material of her shirt, face shrouded in wisps of flaxen hair.

When she didn't answer, fear began to coil in the base of his spine. "Shindou…?"

After what could have been a millennia, she shook out her hair, looking up at him with a neutral smile. "Of course I like Go, Touya. If I didn't, why would I play it so often?"

He let out a breath, relief sagging in his shoulders.

She walked in front of him, turning around to face him as she did so. "Were friends, aren't we?" She chided teasingly. "And when friends hang out, they don't always do the same thing you know!"

And with that, she turned back around, leaving him baffled.

"Friends?" He repeated softly.

Hikaru turned back to look at him, green eyes curious. "Well, yeah." She said, like it was obvious. "And anyway, let's go to the park, huh? I heard there's a dog show going on there!"

.

.

.


	8. gone are the days

There wasn't a dog show, but Touya was beginning to think he'd have much rather enjoyed a pompous parade of groomed and tamed animals being marched around the park than this _monstrosity _of a school festival.

Or at least, it appeared to be some kind of school festival—it would be hard to tell if it _wasn't, _considering all the kids his age milling about.

Touya had never been around so many kids his age before. Obviously he'd had minimal interaction with his peers because of his career choice and his upbringing, but even then there had always been school, neighbors and what not. But never had he been so unceremoniously dumped into a teeming ocean of adolescents the way he was now. Quite honestly it was overwhelming. Every single one of them was loud and in constant movement, dressed in bright colors, funky hats backwards on their heads, neon sneakers, scandalous skirts and truly outrageous shirts, some of which bellied some heinous wording.

And they were everywhere he looked.

"What is this?" He muttered more to himself than his companion.

Shindou, however, was somehow magically able to hear it over the cacophony of yelling teenagers. "No idea." She peered around. "There sure are a lot of stands though—

"Hikaru-chan!"

It was obvious enough to hear the voice above the rest, louder and closer.

Shindou looked around, obviously trying to find who was shouting her name—she didn't have to look far though, whoever it was barreled right into her and knocked her right over.

A girl with long, auburn colored hair vaulted face first at the blonde in what could have been a UFC fighting move but would most likely even be considered illegal in the fighting championship, tackling her into the grass and sending them both sprawling.

"—You could've broken my _head—_"Shindou was grouching.

"—Not like there's much in there anyway—" The fighting champion was retorting.

It wasn't long before the girl's two companions arrived, one sauntering languidly behind the other. She hopped right up as they came closer, looking like she hadn't just exercised some kind of ninja move.

"Oh, Mitani-kun! Kaga-kun! There you two are!"

"Thanks for the welcome, Akari." Shindou groused as she climbed to her feet as well.

Akari whirled to the blonde. "Hikaru-chan, these are my two friends! This is Yuuki Mitani-kun and Tetsuou Kaga-kun! Mitani-kun, Tetsuou-kun, this is Hikaru-chan—we've been best friends since we were in grade school!"

"Do you always push her face first in the ground, or is that a new development in the friendship?" The taller, bored looking one mused drily.

"I was excited to see her!" Akari snapped back, huffing. "Hikaru-chan is always so busy! She's an insei you know—she actually _does _something with that weird Go obsession of hers."

"Weird?!" Three voices echoed in unison, with varying degrees of disbelief (and politeness)

Kaga and Mitani at least looked somewhat used to this kind of blatant neglect of respect for Go, but Touya was still staring, bewildered, at the redhead beside Hikaru—who subsequently was staring back, now that he had spoken.

Hikaru was quick to intervene. "Uh, Akari, this is Touya-kun. He's a friend of mine… a professional Go player, actually."

Akari appraised him openly. It was clear to see she harbored no ill will for the game, for there was no disgust or negative facial expression to her at all. It seemed she just, like most of his peers, found his irrevocable love of the game strange and unfathomable. "Wow." She blinked, before rounding on her two companions. "See? That's what I mean!"

The two boys weren't listening to her anymore though, instead, they were both giving Touya measured looks of their own.

The lazy looking one with the irritated expression suddenly looked darker, eyes narrowing. "Touya… Akira?"

He surveyed the lanky redhead critically. "Yes?" He was fairly sure he'd never met either of them before.

"4-Dan, right?" The shorter one, Mitani, tilted his head.

"That's right." Mitani, at least, didn't look like he wanted to bite him.

Touya was aware of the tension between the three of them—he was always aware of it when it came about, the problem was, he was never sure as to _why _it arrived in the first place and how, exactly to get rid of it. This time was no exception.

Fortunately for him, there was at least one socially adept teenager there who _did._

"No." Shindou roared, with so much finality he almost jumped out of his reverie. "We are _not _talking about Go, again. I have spent the past three hours talking about Go, playing Go, being _around _Go, and I came to the park specifically to get _away _from it. So, why don't we go gorge ourselves on Takoyaki or something?"

Akari clapped her hands. "Great idea, Hikaru! You think they have them deep-friend in that sweet and sour sauce?"

"If my nose is still working properly, then yes, I'm very sure they do. Why don't we go find it?"

With one landmine successfully navigated, it seemed the entire afternoon passed by in relative ease.

Well, perhaps 'entire' afternoon was somewhat exaggerated. It sure seemed like that to Touya—the sun seemed to have been caught in stasis between two buildings, never moving more than an inch at a time whenever Touya glanced up to look (which was quite often). It wasn't that he didn't enjoy it… the festival was, well, exactly what he had expected of it. Shindou's friends were very typical teenagers, although additionally they all had some understanding of Go, which made for an easier transition for him. It was almost nice to peruse the booths, Akari bouncing ahead of them, peering into every stall and making quite a fuss over the tiny trinkets found in most of them. Hikaru followed her at a milder pace, poking fun at her friend and generally looking… ore relaxed then Touya had ever seen her.

Even still, he knew there were other things he'd rather be doing—like playing Go.

.

.

.

"Waya…"

The redhead said nothing in reply, staring fervently at the board speckled in a dizzying pattern of black and white that she was beginning to realize marked yose, or, the end game. Aside from that, however, none of it made sense—clearly Waya thought differently, as he had been staring at this exact same board for over ten minutes without moving a muscle. Perhaps he was creating a new language somewhere in there…

She frowned. "_Waya._" Of course, she knew better then to talk during a game—but this was casual, right? So why was he taking it so seriously?-!

After a moment of deliberation, he made a noise of frustration, collapsing onto the back of his chair in a boneless sprawl. "I resign!" He groaned. "Shindou—you're too good!"

She gave him an awkward smile, anxiously twirling a lock of hair into knots.

It was only a few hours after her very first pro match—which, contrary wise, ended in scarcely a few minutes—and the win under her belt was met with absolute indifference on her part but some ecstatic clapping from Sai. And Waya, whose immediate reaction was to ask her for a 'quick' game. However, she was wise enough to have the foresight to know that 'quick' in Go could mean anything from one to four hours.

Thankfully, this time it was only one.

"Waya-kun…" She trailed off thoughtfully, worrying her lip. "I—I want your serious opinion on this."

"On what? Your savage beating—no need to rub it in."

"No!" She protested immediately, yanking at her hair before finally letting her hand drop. "I just…" She averted her eyes. "I've been thinking, and I want to know what you think—as my _friend, _not as another Insei or a rival or—"

Recognizing the serious lilt to her voice, Waya sat up some, blinking at her curiously. "Okay. Shoot."

"Do you think I should play Go?"

Instantaneously Waya shot up. "Well of _course_! Shindou, who have you been talking to? You're one of the best—no, definitely _the best _of our entire generation and hell, you could probably give the older pros a run for their money. Shindou—you're amazing! People practically adore the ground you walk on around here and you have so much potential and—

He stopped short, searching her forlorn face. "…You don't want to play, do you?"

Hikaru noticed Sai was surprisingly silent during the duration of this exchange. She wondered what he was thinking right now—did he see this coming? Perhaps. She hadn't wanted to bring up her own concerns mainly because she wouldn't know how he felt on the matter but lately it was the _only _thing she could think of. All her friends were pursuing other careers that interested them and where was she? Sure, people praised her skill, thought her 'the best of her generation', but she wasn't even the one playing!

Was it really enough to just be good at it?

"Nervermind." She shook her head, self-depreciatingly. "I shouldn't have said anything… I don't really know what came over me."

"Shindou—

"I love Go, Waya." The words tasted like deceit. "I'm just—I dunno. Going through a phase, I guess. It seems weird that we're only kids and we're already pursing careers, you know? All my other friends at school are all going into other things… some don't even know what they want to be!"

Waya gave her an empathetic smile. "Yeah, yeah. I get it… two years ago I was just a kid in school who loved video games and played Go sometimes at salons. And now—now I'm taking the pro test! It's crazy!"

Her smile didn't quite crease her eyes. "It's happening really fast."

He laughed. "No kidding. For a game that can take hours, it seems like my time as an insei flew right by."

She was relieved with how quickly the post-game discussion came and went, Waya seeming quite chivalrous in cutting it rather short. She bid him a fond farewell and ran off to catch her train, leaving the redhead to ponder morosely in her wake.

"Shindou…" He sighed.

He'd always had his suspicions with her—how could she look so bored playing such an intense game? For as long as he'd known her as a Go player, she never seemed particularly interested in any part of the game at all.

And yet she was so good. _Terrifyingly _good.

He rubbed his neck. "What a contradiction!"


End file.
